Archives For Mindset

What stands between you and achieving your fitness and nutrition goals?

Have you ever stopped to ask yourself that question?

You hit your 30’s and you know 40 is going to be next. You have this big plan of getting in the best shape of your life. You are ready to take the challenge and get rid of that belly that is hanging over those jeans. You realize your suit is becoming a little tighter for the wrong reason. Running around with the kids is getting a little more challenging and you are out of breath. Keeping up with the guys on the court or field is taking it out of you more than usual.

You know you have been thinking for quite some time that you need to shake things up and get back into the gym.

Then you start thinking where do I start? What do I do? What’s holding me back?

In other words, what are the limiting factors that are holding you back?

Limiting factors are anything that makes it difficult for you to achieve your desired results.

There are many limiting factors out there like:

Lack of time

Work/family commitments

Procrastination

Past injury/present injury

And more….

I could go on, but to be honest, those are all EXCUSES!

Let’s not pretend, but instead take control of your fitness and nutrition to live a healthier lifestyle.

Over the years of working hands on with people and recently online coaching, the 3 main limiting factors that are holding you back from looking, feeling and performing at your best are:

MINDSET

You played sport back in the day, you have an idea of what to eat, you know what you want to look like, but all this has to be translated into massive action and creating sustainable habits as you move along.

When it comes to getting in the best shape of your life, or any other aspect of life, you have to have a clear vision of what it looks like to you. Some sort of a plan to get to where you want to go. In other words direction!

I learnt this strategy when I attended Tony Robbins, Unleash The Power Within seminar and then further enhanced at BB3 Fitness & Nutrition Center where I worked.

It’s called RPM.

R – What RESULTS do you want to achieve? What’s your desired outcome? Be as precise as you can with this. Don’t be afraid to dream big with this. This is your life for you to be your ultimate best so don’t hold back on what that is for you.

P – What’s your PURPOSE for wanting that specific result? Why do you want to achieve that result? How is it going to make a difference to you and the people around you? These are really important questions, so take time to answer them.

M – Massive Action Plan. This is your map that you are going to follow to get from point A to point B. It like going on a road trip and you plan the direction you are taking. Start thinking how many days per week you going to workout. What are those days and times you are going to train? How much water do I need to drink? What workouts you are going to do. How am I going to structure and prepare my meals?

Once done, you are going to have a blueprint of what needs to be done, to get you in better shape and progressing. Visualize the outcome. Visualize yourself doing the work. Visualize eating for optimal health. Visualize the process and you getting there on a daily basis.

NUTRITION

Good nutrition is going to get you to look, feel and perform at your best. Whether you want to lose fat, build muscle, live a healthier lifestyle or even improve sports performance, your nutrition is going to have a major impact on all these factors.

If you don’t eat healthy, wholesome nutritious foods, you are going to feel crappy. Your energy isn’t going to be optimal throughout the day. It’s going to hold you back from be your ULTIMATE best!

Nutrition is a major limiting factor!

Start by making simple changes and creating better habits with your eating.

Increase the amount of water you drink and decrease the amount of soda, juices and sports drinks you consume.

Increase lean protein sources at each meal.

Increase the amount of fruits and vegetables you eat daily.

These are 3 simple habits that can be incorporated today that can make a difference to your health and you moving towards your goals.

The limiting factor with exercise is if you are not moving enough, chances are you are slowly going to get some love handles. Not what any guy wants in his 30’s or 40’s.

If your lifestyle is wake up early, grab something on the run to work, lunch meeting, grab something from the vending machine to keep you going in the evening, then get home to a massive meal, sit down and fall asleep in front the TV, trust me when I say, you are adding on the pounds slowly but surely.

You got to get moving!

To become fitter, be stronger, live a healthier lifestyle, you need to commit to becoming more active by focused, consistent, intense exercise.

Aim to strength train at least 3 times per week and cardio 2-3 times per week, depending on your time commitments. If you lack time, we all have 20 minutes that we can commit to working out. Keep the intensity high and give it your all for those 20 minutes.

Focused exercise, increasing physical activity (increasing the amount of steps you take each day), and healthy eating control, will produce long-term results.

In concluding, these 3 limiting factors don’t have to hold you back from looking, feeling and performing at your best. You can overcome these obstacles by having a clear plan of action with your mindset, creating simple nutritional habits and building from there and focused intense exercise.

All that you need is within you, to unleash your potential to be your ultimate best, to look, feel and perform at your greatest on a daily basis.

Get out there and take ACTION to becoming the best version of yourself!

Over the 15 plus years I have been in the fitness industry world, I have tried many different aspects of training and nutrition protocols, to see what works best for myself and clients I have worked alongside.

Some things worked better than others, and some got better results than others. In other words…what worked for one person didn’t necessarily work for the other and vice versa.

I used myself as a science project over the years as well. I found that with some of the things I tested out, I never really felt 100%, and that some aspect was missing.

I would push myself to the limits, feel depleted after workouts, and thought at the time I was ‘killin’ my training.

I tried high carb, low carb, no carb eating….never felt 100%.

I did vegan for 6 months and didn’t feel great.

I tried HIIT workouts which got me results, but drained me at times.

I tried 6, 8, 9 and 12 week programs that mainly focused on building muscle. Got some results but couldn’t sustain it for longer than the time period.

I played with around my nutrition on each of these training protocols, but never felt like I could sustain it long term or for a lifetime.

And I tried many other things….

As I got older and I must say a little more mature, I started listening to my body a little and really taking notice of what others were doing that I respected in the industry.

I also open my mind to other modalities of training, not just the lifting of heavy stuff.

I was missing out on a huge part of my training which was the recovery side of things. I found more balance in my training.

As the years went on, I added another component to my training which was yoga.

It was like a whole new world for me and finally I was enjoying training in a whole new way. I was starting to feel more energized and recovering better. I was even lifting less often but with a more focused attention to detail.

With my new found knowledge I started to put together the pieces from my own experiences and learning from others. This is when I came up with a 360 degree approach to health, wellness and vitality.

The GD360 Approach has a balanced methodology that focuses on 6 components on wheel:

MINDSET: It all starts here with the mind, as what you focus on you achieve. You have to know what you want, why you want it, and a massive plan of action to go after it. You have to have clarity with you goal to achieve it and take massive action on a daily basis to achieve the desired outcome.

NUTRITION: Nutrition plays a massive part in every aspect of your life as what you eat has an effect on how you function on a daily basis. Consuming healthy, wholesome, nutritious food, will provide you with the fuel your body needs for your daily actions.

RESISTANCE TRAINING: You have to challenge the body in some way for it to grow, by using various training tools or your own body weight. Resistance training builds strength, power and muscular endurance depending on your goals, for you to feel strong and powerful, reduce the risk of injuries and improve health.

CARDIOVASCULAR CONDITIONING: this is a very important component to improve cardiovascular fitness, using various heart rate intensities, depending on the goal.

RECOVERY: This comes in may different forms, from stretching, foam rolling, trigger point therapy, to ice baths, steam rooms, sauna, jacuzzi, to massages, sleep, nutrition, lower intensity workouts for some.

RE-ENERGIZE/REVITALIZE: Here is where we do things we enjoy, like dancing, surfing, paddle boarding, or any fun thing that you enjoy doing. In this approach you can also do things like various types of yoga, tai chi, breathing exercises, meditation, use of essential oils, pretty much anything to de-stress the body.

As you can see, this is a well rounded approach to your Health, Wellness and Vitality. With this approach, I have been able to find balance in my week with my health and fitness, but more importantly sustain it and enjoy it as I get older.

How can you apply the GD360 Approach to your daily routines, to become 1% better?

Have you ever said this to yourself?

I have heard them all and more, and I am sure you have heard some yourself!

Here is the thing…

We all have the same amount of time in the day. I get that you have other things going on in your life and so do many other people out there and myself included.

Getting in shape and living a healthier lifestyle does take time and does not happen by accident.

You have to carve out that time. You have to make some time in your day.

Unfortunately nobody is going to give you some extra time. YOU got to make it!

Start where you are with your health, nutrition and fitness.

Have a plan to simply improve by 1% each day. That is going to be different for each person and only you know what that 1% is for you.

For your nutrition t could be as simple of drinking a glass of water each day, or drinking one less can of soda a day, or eating one piece of fruit or vegetable a day.

For your fitness it could be going for a walk once a twice a week, or doing some push ups each morning, or joining the gym or finding a workout partner.

These are all simple things you can start with.

If you simply aim to make each day better than the previous day, you are heading in the right direction.

How do you do all this?

Decide how much time you can commit to improving 1%. You know what your days and weeks are like and how much time you can allocate to looking, feeling and performing at your best.

Once you have decided when you can commit and what you are going to do, schedule it into your calendar and set a reminder on your phone. This will prompt you to keep your appointment with yourself.

Focus on small chunks, like 2 weeks at a time. Once you master scheduling time for your health, fitness and nutrition, increase it to 3 weeks and then for a full month.

Stick to doing the little things on a daily basis and the big things will fall into place.

Book some time for yourself on a daily basis for your health and fitness. You will thank yourself later on for doing that.

Make this work for yourself.

Be realistic: start where you are and work towards where you want to get to.

Know what works best for you: if you are not a morning person avoid scheduling things in the morning. Find options that are going to suit your schedule.

Block out you time: let people see that you have blocked out time for yourself
and respect that time for yourself as well.

Expect the unexpected: plan for when things are going to come up. If you need a babysitter, make sure it is planned. Do you need to move things around to make it work? If so, then do that. Make sure and have it all planned for your success.

It’s going to be challenging at the beginning, but it will be worth it in the end.

You will have to step out of your comfort zone, so get get accustomed to being uncomfortable, as that is way the magic happens.

Take one day at a time, and get back up, dust yourself off, and get going again.

Like this:

Are you doing just enough or going past the finish line?

I recently went out for a run. Just me and my thoughts. No headphones or any music to listen to.

Now running isn’t my favorite thing to do but I understand the benefits of cardiovascular training.

It was only a 20 minute jog and coming up to the end my thoughts went to something I have struggled with in the past.

I felt myself slowing down as I was getting closer to the end of my jog. It made me realize a common fault I have made many times when getting close to the end with many things I do.

As my thoughts drifted and I became present with what I was doing on my jog, so I picked up the pace. I started thinking of my good friend Bill Beck when he ran 50 miles for a charitable event. He was in pain with his knees, but what he did at the end was magnificent.

Even with all the pain he was in, he ran an extra mile.

Now that for me is going the extra mile.

Getting to the finish isn’t always enough. Its going that extra mile and following through with what you started.

As you get closer to the finish line it doesn’t mean slowing down, it means finishing strong. Finishing with a sprint to the line like athletes do after they have run a marathon, or a cycling event.

The finish line is not necessarily the end of the race. The box maybe ticked to say you have completed your desired outcome, but you still have to keep going with whatever is next.

Why should you go the extra mile?

1. It builds character.

When you go the extra mile, you develop a reputation to do more and be more. You instill in yourself to continuously do your best at all times no matter what. You become a better person by simply going the extra mile.

2.It’s the best thing to do.

Doing just enough or simply crossing the finish line is being average, being mediocre. You have to challenge yourself to be you best at all times. To go above and beyond what is expected of you. To follow through and continuously grow as an individual. By going the extra mile you you go into the unknown, down the road less travelled, and it is in the unknown that we learn, develop and grow.

3.It creates greater opportunities.

The road less travelled creates further opportunities that you may not have known existed. You never know what lies around the corner and it is the reason you should always go the extra mile.

Keep unleashing your true potential and giving your ultimate best long after you have completed your race.

3 Steps to your health and fitness success.

How to get from where you are to where you want to be.

Have you ever stopped and wondered what it really takes to achieve your health and fitness goals?

Over the 15 years of working with clients across the globe, I have noticed some common question that constantly come up.

What do I need to do to lose weight?

What do I need to do to get in shape?

What do I need to eat?

Can you do a program for me?

Can you help me with my fitness?

And the most famous statement of all time.

I have tried everything but nothing works…..

Does any of these questions sound familiar to you? I know I have been there with asking questions like these at some point in my life.

Success with your health and fitness goals takes strategic planning just like any other aspect of your life. You have to sit down and dig deep to find out what you really want to achieve and why you want to achieve the goal you have set your heart on. It has to be unique to you and for you. Not for anyone else but yourself.

This is where is all starts.You have to have a mindset that you are going to crush your goal that you set out no matter what. You have to believe in yourself that you can do it.

Mindset tips:

Have a clear, precise vision of what you want to achieve.

Have a purpose so strong that it not only drives you but also inspires others to be more and do more.

Know exactly why you want to achieve your goal.

Visualize the end result. See it. Believe it. Achieve it!

Commit to taking action daily to get closer to what you want to achieve.

Step 2: NUTRITION

This is the area that most people struggle with and it is where you can make a massive breakthrough with your health and fitness. It is about seeing where you are presently and making small changes in your eating habits. It is about replacing one thing for a healthier option. It is about doing the little things daily and on a consistent basis.

Nutrition tips:

Drink half your bodyweight (lbs) in ounces of water

Aim to eat every 3-4 hours

Plan your meals in advance

When at the grocery, purchase foods mainly from fruit and veg section.

Eat foods closest to it natural source

STEP 3: EXERCISE

Exercise can be done in various forms from going to the gym, outdoor activities, swimming, biking, playing sport to name a few things. It is going to take grit and determination. It is going to take hard work. You WILL have to step out of your comfort zone. You will have to challenge yourself. You will have to push yourself. In the end the rewards are priceless and you will feel on top of the world.

Exercise tips:

Workout 3-5 times per week.

Incorporate strength training to your routine.

Focus on making improvements with each workout.

Structure your week by scheduling days and times to workout in your calendar.

Commit to doing each workout scheduled.

Following these 3 steps will provide you with greater clarity to achieve your desired outcome. Celebrate the little victories along the way. Stay focused on the task at hand and unleash your true potential to be your ultimate best with your health and fitness.

Where do you need more help with these 3 steps? What do you need to do next to cultivate better habits with your health and fitness? You can leave a comment and let me know.

At some point in your life you wanted to change something. To lose some weight. To put some muscle on. To train for a 5K, 10K, half marathon or the very popular obstacle course races like Spartan, Tough Mudder and Warrior Dash to name a few.

With each of these, a decision has to be made. A very precise decision to take action and train for the relevant goal that you are after.

However, saying ‘I want to lose weight’ or ‘I want to do an obstacle race’ is not a very strong commitment to achieve your desired outcome. Yes it is a good start to the process but it will stop there if you don’t take the next step.

The next step is to take action and burn the bridges that will stop you from going back.

You got to make it impossible to go back to your old habits. Create an uncomfortable scenario for if you fail.

So if you want to lose some of those extra pounds, burn the bridges by getting rid of all the junk in your kitchen. Get rid of all the sugary drinks you may have stored away.

You have to take some kind of action no matter how small or big to achieve your desired outcome.

I noticed that when I talk to people when they want to get started on there Health and Fitness journey they are sometimes hesitant and want the perfect day to get started or the perfect time to get started.

When is that perfect day or time?

NOW!

Saying I will start tomorrow or next week or next month or when I get some new shoes or when I get some time isn’t going to change anything for you. I didn’t workout today and it didn’t kill me, so it must be OK. 3 or 6 or 12 months later….and you are out of breath and panting as you walk from the car to your office or up a flight of stairs or running for the bus. This way of thinking will NOT get you closer to your health, wellness and vitality goals. You have to avoid these mistakes and this way of thinking as it will end up costing you.

Now let’s flip it…

Success on the other hand is doing the things we don’t want to do and doing it to our very best no matter what. It’s a few simple disciplines practiced daily. Its like getting up in the morning and following your routine.

Successdul people always have a plan and stick to it no matter what. They know what they want and go after it with drive, determination, discipline and massive action.

You can do the same with your health and fitness by doing the little things on a daily basis. Commit to working out a minimum of 4-5 times a week and for at least 30 mins of intense exercise to break a sweat but not leaving your exhausted and drained. You should feel energized after these workouts.

Plan you meals ahead of time. Know what you are having for each of your meals by taking a day each week to plan your meals for the week. At first this may take some time but to be successful you have to plan for the results you want to achieve.

Start slow and build. Don’t try to run a marathon before you can run. A baby has to learn to crawl first, then goes through the stages before he or she can walk, then run. It’s a process. Be patient with the stages and the process.

We as humans have the ability to take control of our lives. Its through our conscious choices on a daily basis, that we can develop and transform our lives, to what we dream of it being.

Make each day a success with your daily choices to unleash your true potential to be your ultimate best.

Like this:

About Gavin

Gavin De Souza is a Certified Precision Nutrition Coach and Fitness Professional.

He has worked in several training facilities in the UK and US, specializing in Personal Training, Nutrition, Body Transformation, as well as Youth Fitness Development and Sport Specific preparation.

Gavin has been involved in the Fitness Industry since 2002.

In addition, Gavin focuses on helping to serve, mentor, inspire, lead and empower busy, successful, professionals, to find balance in their lives, so that they can unleash their true potential, to LOOK, FEEL and PERFORM at their ultimate best in sport and life.